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Vietnam intensifies measures to prevent bird flu

May 8, 2013

A senior agricultural official has called on provinces nationwide to intensify measures to prevent the spread of bird flu viruses, especially the transmission of H7N9 into Vietnam as the new strain continues spreading in neighbouring China.

At a meeting of the national Steering Committee for Bird Flu Prevention and Control held in Hanoi on May 7, Vu Van Tam, Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, warned of the high risk of the epidemic on poultry despite measures taken to control any outbreak.

Vietnam to ban antibiotics in livestock farmingThe Saigon Times Daily HCMC - Vietnam will impose a ban on all kinds of antibiotics in livestock farming after 2020, and those currently used in animal feed are only allowed until the end of this year, said Hoang Huong Giang from the Livestock Production Department under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, Thanh Nien reported. Only 15 among 43 types of antibiotics approved for animal feed can be used until the end of the year. The rampant use of antibiotics in farming has caused immunity among bacteria and damaged the health of consumers due to higher-than-permitted residues. According to a recent survey on 208 poultry farms in Tien Giang Province, the level of antibiotics used in farming has been detected to be six times higher than Europe’s standards. Some 84% of them are used for disease prevention, said Nguyen Thu Thuy, deputy director of the Department of Animal Health under the agriculture ministry. In addition to using animal feed with high antibiotic levels, about 72% of farm owners use at least one type of antibiotics directly in the livestock’s lifetime to prevent disease or to stimulate growth. In pig farming, antibiotics are also intensively used. According to the department’s statistics on the antibiotics immunity among 202 samples of Campylobacter bacteria (which can cause diseases for humans and other animals) from 343 livestock farms in the Mekong Delta, 100% of samples are immune to Erythromycin, 99% immune to Sulfamethoxazole – Trimethoprim and 92%…... [read more]

The city has set up seven round the clock checkpoints to check and monitor the transport of livestock. These checkpoints are located in Ba La (Ha Dong), Ha Vy (Thuong Tin), Phu Xuyen and Ngoc Hoi (Thanh Tri), Doc La (Gia Lam), Trung Gia (Soc Son), and Trung Ha (Ba Vi). The municipal authorities have insisted that functional agencies and localities inspect the transport of cattle and sterilise breeding farms. Hanoi’s Veterinary Department has also asked the animal health departments in provinces and cities nationwide to exchange information, work together to prevent an epidemic, and strictly deal with any violations of food hygiene and safety. Currently, Hanoi has the largest amount of livestock and poultry in Vietnam, with more than 1.6 million pigs and nearly 1.4 million birds. However, this figure only meets 60 percent of the city’s demand, therefore Hanoi has to import cattle and poultry from other provinces and cities. As a result, the city faces a high risk of contracting swine flu although it is still free from the epidemic at present.... [read more]

This is the first time bird flu has been detected in Binh Tan this year. The virus was also found in 1,200 ducks belonging to farmer Le Minh Tuan, which had not been vaccinated. He said that from May 5-12, his flock of ducks had shown symptoms of a flu-like disease and some 200 ducks were later found dead. On May 13, the provincial Animal health Department took samples from the flock and sent them for testing at a veterinary agency in Can Tho city. On May 14, the provincial Animal Health Department culled all the remaining ducks, disinfected the immediate areas, and vaccinated other flocks in the districts. They also began a campaign to raise public awareness of preventative measures.... [read more]

One reason is that some localities did not destroy all the animals infected in the previous outbreak. New livestock transported to the area may have also played a part in the new outbreak. Quang Tri’s Animal Health offices are now working closely with the authorities of the three districts and Dong Ha town to treat the disease with antibiotics, while ensuring that carcasses are effectively destroyed and that strict safety precautions are being taken in slaughter houses. Quang Tri’s provincial Animal Health Department has asked people to take the initiative in informing about further outbreaks of disease in order to deal with the epidemic more effectively.... [read more]

The MoH Animal Health Department reports that the bird flu remains scattered in 7 provinces, namely Ca Mau, Dien Bien, Soc Trang, Kon Tum, Quang Tri, Nghe An and Nam Dinh. The lethal strain of H5N1 virus was found in a flock of 45-day-old unvaccinated ducks raised by a farmer in Thanh Ninh hamlet, Thanh Thoi Thuan commune in Soc Trang province. More than 500 out of 630 sick ducks died. The provincial Animal Health Department has asked local veterinarians to cull all infected ducks. In Nam Dinh province, the same virus was found in a flock of 270 ducks in Nghi An commune, Nam Truc district. Mai Dang Viet, who was raising the 7-month-old ducks, said the ducks had just been given a shot of the bird flu vaccine. The flock was culled by local veterinarians. The MoH has asked its provincial and municipal departments of health to keep a close watch for further outbreaks, which are expected to emerge during the lunar New Year festival. It has also dispatched missions to inspect preparedness in Hanoi and Thai Binh, Hai Duong, Ha Nam, Nam Dinh and Ha Tinh provinces.... [read more]

The disease was detected at a farm in Dak Me village, Bo Y commune several weeks ago, where 14 ducks were found sick or dead. Local authorities and veterinarians culled nearly 2,000 ducks and chickens and their products. The provincial Animal Health Department disinfected farms in the commune and established checkpoints to ban the transport of poultry to and from the affected area. It also launched a communication campaign and vaccinated 5,000 poultry in the commune. The outbreak has been contained in Bo Y and has not spread to neighbouring localities, said Tran Van Chuong, head of the provincial Animal Health Department. The provincial People’s Committee has asked its relevant departments to intensify measures to prevent bird flu recurring.... [read more]

The infected provinces include Hai Duong, Thai Binh, Thai Nguyen, Hung Yen, Bac Ninh, Hai Phong, Nam Dinh, Ha Nam, Lang Son and most recently, Nghe An. Hoang Van Nam, director of the ministry’s Animal Health Department said that the localities have continued to discover infected pigs, especially in the cities and provinces of Thai Binh, Hai Phong, Ha Nam, Lang Son and Nghe An. Nam said the epidemic is still at high risk of spreading to other northern and central areas because the quarantine stations set up in localities have proved ineffective. Those provinces remaining unaffected by the blue-ear pig virus have already established quarantine stations. Nam further said heads of provincial-level animal health units will have to take responsibility and be open to disciplinary action if infected pigs get through the quarantine stations. Pham Thanh Binh, head of the Animal Health Unit in central Ha Tinh province, reported that nearly 100 infected pigs had been seized at the province’s quarantine stations while being transported between Bac Giang and Ha Tinh provinces. The central provinces of Thanh Hoa, Nghe An, Ha Tinh, Thua Thien-Hue are currently focused on checking pigs transported in their areas, he said. Minister Cao Duc Phat asked the provinces to take drastic preventative measures and entrusted the specific tasks to the relevant authorities at a grassroots level to help people incinerate infected pigs and decontaminate surrounding areas. With more than 2,000 pigs affected by the blue-ear virus, Hanoi’s Animal Health Unit started their contamination activities…... [read more]

This was due to the effective measures taken by the Dak Lak Animal Health Department like locating the epidemic, setting up four new checkpoint stations, disinfecting breeding farms, and destroying any infected fowl. Thuy Le Vu, the vice director of the Dak Lak Animal Health Department, said that in addition to communication activities to raise public awareness of the danger of the bird flu and to advise them to only eat well-cooked meat and eggs, the department helped some people clean and disinfect their breeding facilities. The department has also asked the Department of Animal Health under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to provide more vaccine to help prevent the epidemic in the future. The deadly bird flu virus that hit the province from May 18-28 infected 2,600 fowl.... [read more]

Currently, the amount of pigs in HCM City only meets 12-15 percent of the residents’ demand for pork. Therefore, the city has to buy pigs from other localities, mostly Dong Nai, Long An and Binh Duong. Everyday, about 8,000-9,000 pigs are transported to HCM City, putting the city at risk of being seriously infected by the deadly disease. HCM City has established checkpoints in Hoc Mon Cu Chi and Binh Chanh districts to control the transport, slaughter and trading of pigs in infected areas. Phan Xuan Thao, Head of the HCM City Department for Animal Health, says that his department is intensifying strict measures to prevent the disease spreading. Mr Thao says that the illegal transport of sick pigs from other provinces to HMC City has risen sharply. The municipal Animal Health Department has already uncovered more than two tonnes of pork without a clear origin being transported to HCM City. To deal with the spread of the epidemic, he says that the Department has requested all 24 veterinary stations in the city to monitor the transport, trade and slaughter of pigs. However, there is growing concern about the illegal transport of sick pigs from the infected areas to the city and vice versa, and the selling of pork of unclear origin on flea markets in Thu Duc and Binh Thanh districts.... [read more]

The HCM City Municipal People’s Committee on August 13 urged key corporations and cattle processors to speed up the purchase, slaughtering and delivery of safe pork in the face of the spreading of the blue-ear pig disease. It also asked the designated agencies to stockpile safe meat to ensure an adequate supply of pork products on the market after the epidemic wanes. Farmers are running into difficulties with the purchase price of pigs having fallen dramatically to VND22,000/kg. Facing a big loss, they are not interested in investing in new pig herds, which could result in a serious shortage of safe meat on the market when the epidemic is contained. The Municipal People’s Committee instructed its departments and districts to enhance the dissemination of information about the epidemic and preventative measures. It asked farmers, abattoirs and consumers not to hide outbreaks or purchase, sell and transport sick animals, or dispose of them in public places. The committee also called for a tight control of transport and sales of animal products, especially pork, at street meet stalls, inter-provincial bus stations, wholesale markets and entrance gates to prevent products of unknown origin from penetrating the city. Also on August 13, Long An province – a gateway to HCM City – declared the blue ear pig disease in Chau Thanh district. It warned the disease could spread rapidly to neighbouring communes and buffer zones, including Tan Chanh, Tan An, Phuoc Tuy, Nhut Ninh, Duc Tan, Anh Vinh Ngai and Binh Tam communes. The…... [read more]

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